Union, employer and compensation system gaps and failures: Workers with injuries perceptions

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Workers who suffered a workplace injury and submitted a claim with the compensation board in Ontario often faced economic and non-economic costs that provoked depressive feelings, family strain, financial strain, and feelings of diminished self-worth. OBJECTIVE: This qualitative descriptive study aimed to understand the perceived gaps and failures associated with the support systems (e.g., union, compensation and employer) that were in place to assist some male underground workers in Sudbury, Ontario, Canada who had suffered a workplace injury and had a compensation claim. METHODS: Twelve in-depth, in-person, individual, semi-structured interviews were conducted and data were transcribed verbatim and anonymized at the time of transcription. Data analysis followed Braun and Clarke’s guidelines for thematic analysis. RESULTS: Themes that emerged include: unfair and inadequate recognition of an injury; limited communication with stakeholders involved with their claim, including claim adjudicators, challenges when returning to work, and compensation claim system barriers. CONCLUSIONS: Cooperation, collaboration, knowledge transfer, and decreased power imbalances could help to reduce the economic and non-economic strain felt by a worker with an injury. Additionally, a government-funded third-party advocate who knows the medical system, union contracts, the workers’ compensation system, and employer policies and practices could act on behalf of an injured worker.